• Blog your pepper progress. The first image in your first post will be used to represent your Glog.

arringdd Grow Log 2010

Official 2010 Grow Log for arringdd

Hey guys...finally got off my arse and started this grow log. I've been lurking around here for the past few months and have had seeds in the BioDome since Feb 4, but have been so busy with work that I haven't had the opportunity to post the pepper "experience" until now.

I guess to start off with, I'll give you the rundown of all the species that I'm attempting this year.....my first by the way. These are in no particular order, and have the vendor info as well. Vendor abbreviations include (THSC - Hippy, PG - Peppergal, PM- PepperMania, TGSC - Tomato growers supply company, TWF - Trade winds fruit, GS - Gourmetseed.com, CG - Cherrygal.com, L - Lowe's, KS - Knoxville Seed)


Lemon Drop (PG, THSC)
Charleston/Carolina Cayenne (PG)
Aji Cristal (PG)
Cayenne (PG, L)
Fatalii (PG, PM)
White Habanero (THSC, PG, TWF)
Chiltepin (PG)
Ring of Fire (PG)
Rocoto Yellow (PM, PG)
Chilhaucle Negro (PM)
Costeno Amarillo (PM)
Jamaican Hot (PM)
Beni Highlands (PM)
Bishop's Crown (PM)
Trinidad Scorpion (THSC)
Trinidad Yellow Scotch Bonnet (THSC)
Black Prince (THSC)
Bhut Jolokia (THSC, TWF)
Numex Twighlight (THSC)
Goatsweed (THSC)
7-POT "Jonah" (THSC)
7-POD (THSC)
Thai Hot (TWF)
Kung Pao (TWF)
Bolivian Rainbow (TWF)
Tabasco (TWF)
Filius Blue (TWF)
Chocolate Habanero (TWF)
Royal Black (TGSC)
Caribbean Red (TGSC)
Purple Jalepeno (TGSC)
Pretty Purple Pepper (TGSC)
Medusa Hybrid (TGSC)
Jalepeno (L)
Orange Habanero (L)
Serrano (L)
Sweet Banana (KS)
Heirloom Chervena Chushka (CG)
Shishito (GS)


I have grown peppers before, but only store-bought varieties that have already been germinated and grown for you for a couple of months.....never any from seed. I started this adventure by reading as much as possible on this forum. Next, I went to Lowe's on a materials gathering expedition. I did not find exactly everything that I wanted, but did find a few helpful items. Firstly, I bought a small 4-shelf indoor greenhouse which was 2 feet wide by about 5-6 feet tall.....just large enough to allow for some experimentation, but small enough to fit in my small spare bedroom and to not incite divorce proceedings!! After reading the forum a bit, I decided against peat pots, but thought that making my own mix was maybe too ambitious, and dirty, for a beginner with a limited work area. After some research, I settled on the Biodome system. Clean, and easy to use, although maybe a bit on the expensive side. At any rate, I bought 2 of the 60-cell rigs and 2 heating mats, seeds from the above vendors, and various other supplies.

I started the first 120 seedlings on February 4 and got ~90% germination rates. The only plants that did not start on that first go were the Scorpions from THSC. White habs were also poor germinators from THSC and TWF....not sure why. After the first 2 sets of true leaves were showing, I transplanted each seedling into 3" pots filled with plain old compost with small twigs, bark, etc. to aid in drainage. A small bit of perlite was added as well. My next task was to find an easy way to water these babies in the limited space I had without causing a god-awful mess. I found a nice solution at Lowe's with a lid from a heavy-duty plastic storage bin. These lids had a 2" deep inner well which could hold 24 of my 3" pots and could hold plenty of fluid for bottom watering. Luckily these sturdy lids fit perfectly into the shelves built into my little indoor greenhouse.

I provided illumination with simple Wal-Mart shop lights with bulbs of two different outputs....one about 4100 K, and the other about 6500 K.....not exactly sure. These lights were for the transplanted seedlings.

4532906479_632d245e3c_m.jpg

All my seedlings in one shot.

4532907651_7690796f63_m.jpg

Peppermania seeds

4533543232_f1839a3558_m.jpg

Trade Winds Fruit (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!)

4532907763_210c1a41db_m.jpg

THSC (Good for most, bad for a few in my hands)
 
Click to expand...
Looks real good. It's nice to see all the pictures up at once. Must be a good feeling to have all of those in 3 gallon pots, I've got many more of those days still to go.
 
SS, yeah, you're right the Black Kow is just top soil, my mistake. The Pro-Mix has compost in it and I'm not sure if you'd technically call it potting mix or soil and I'm not sure the exact difference. In all honesty, I'm very new at this and was shooting for something with decent drainage and maybe a bit of food in it for the new transplants, at least enough to last a week or so until I give them their first outdoor fertilizer. I plan on pretty much supplementing their entire nutrient needs with fertilizers, etc. Anything else is a bonus I guess. I just figured that everyone raves about the ProMix and this was all I could find in my area!!

An interesting note though, the Black Kow top soil is much darker and more homogeneous than the cheaper top soil I got. The cheaper stuff has more organic debris in it which I actually am fine with since that should improve the drainage of the mixture in the end.

As for the worm-like things....SS is correct.....they are from the pine trees in the yard! Good observation!

Thanks to everyone for all their input and advice. I will keep the images coming as things move along. I'm sure that the next bit of advice I will need is on pests. I haven't noticed any bugs yet really, but I'm sure they'll come. For now, I will continue with nutrients and flower/bud pinching and force these guys into making some more stems, leaves, and roots.

Keep the comments coming!
 
arringdd said:
The Pro-Mix has compost in it and I'm not sure if you'd technically call it potting mix or soil and I'm not sure the exact difference.
Click to expand...

Generally, potting mix is mostly peat based and used in containers, while potting soil is much heavier and used in beds. What are the listed contents on the bag?
 
SS, I think you are correct. What I have is probably "potting soil" and not truly a mix. However, I guess I have kind of created a mix of sorts. I definitely have lots to learn!

At any rate, I'm not at home with a bag right now, but if memory serves, the ProMix that I have contains roughly 30-50% sphagnum peat, lime, compost, perlite, and some root stimulator. In the mix that I created, I've used about 1/3 ProMix, 1/3 cheap top soil with lots of organic debris, 1/3 Black Kow top soil which is much richer and darker looking, and finally some Perlite and Vermiculite for added drainage. I hope that I haven't screwed anything up here. The mixture drains well so far and the plants appear healthy.....knock on wood! I will also be adding exogenous nutes as deemed necessary by myself and the accumulated knowledge on this forum.

I just can't wait to get a taste of some of these exotic chilis. All of the reviews here have me anxious for late summer and hopefully a bountiful harvest. I just have to figure out what I'm going to do with all the chilis once I have them!
 
I wish I was that organized and on top of things my first year arringdd. Looking forward to seeing how your year goes.

Your mix sounds fine, mine was pretty similar last year. Best of luck to you.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top